Sex Offender Recidivism

“Sex offenders are a highly heterogeneous mixture of individuals who have committed violent sexual assaults on strangers, offenders who have had inappropriate sexual contact with family members, individuals who have molested children, and those who have engaged in a wide range of other inappropriate and criminal sexual behaviors,” according to the Center for Sex Offender Management (CSOM). These individuals are highly dangerous to those who have previously been sexually offended and members of the community upon return after prison. “Recidivism may occur when there is a new arrest, new conviction, or new commitment to custody” (CSOM). There are high hopes that these arrests and convictions do not happen, but there are high chances that a sex offender will offend again.

A problem regarding sexual offenders and recidivism, are that a lot of victims may not report that they have been sexually abused or raped. “The National Crime Victimization Surveys (Bureau of Justice Statistics) conducted in 1994, 1995, and 1998 indicate that only 32 percent (one out of three) of sexual assaults against persons 12 or older are reported to law enforcement” (CSOM). In other words, not even half of all sexual assaults are reported. The reason behind this is fear. Victims are afraid that they may be in danger if the offender finds out they told someone or they want to get rid of the memory. “They may fear that reporting will lead to the following: further victimization by the offender; other forms of retribution by the offender or by the offender’s friends or family; arrest, prosecution, and incarceration of an offender who may be a family member or friend and on whom the victim or others may depend; others finding out about the sexual assault; not being believed; and being traumatized by the criminal justice response” (CSOM).

To possibly prevent sex offenders who have been released back into the community from recidivism, gaining knowledge on each offender may help. Experts need to pay attention to specific facts about each individual offender. “There are historical characteristics, such as age, prior offense history, and age at first sex offense arrest or conviction” (CSOM). Those are only some of the factors that can help. Others would be changes in their life, their use of drugs and alcohol, etc. Surveys have come a long way in gaining knowledge on groups of offenders and their recidivism rates, but it does not account for everyone. Researchers may have separate results based on the characteristics and other factors that they test. There may be no real answer as to the amount of sex offenders that fail and commit again.

Reliable results were found in a 1997, study by Prentky, Lee, Knight, and Cerce on rapists and child molesters, see graph. “In this study, recidivism was operationalized as a failure rate and calculated as the proportion of individuals who were rearrested using survival analysis (which takes into account the amount of time each offender has been at risk in the community). Results show that over longer periods of time, child molesters have a higher failure rate—thus, a higher rate of rearrest—than rapists (52 percent versus 39 percent over 25 years)” (CSOM).

These results are very accurate but only account for sex offenders that had committed child molestation or rape. The graph clearly indicates that overall child molesters had more of a recidivism rate, but both sets of offenders matched up closely.

Recidivism is always going to be an issue and will never go away. The more research and surveys conducted, the more it can help with the prevention of sex offenders committing sex crimes again. The sad part is that victims are usually afraid to report that they have been assaulted and there is no way to know they were. It will be an accomplishment to keep as many sex offenders and sexual predators with potential chances of committing again, off the street even though there is just no way to prevent them all.

Works Cited:

Center for Sex Offender Management. “Recidivism of Sex Offenders.” CSOM. Department of Justice. May 2001. Web. 6 Aug 2010. http://www.csom.org/pubs/recidsexof.html

Juvenile Sex Offenders

Children can be perceived as innocent, naïve and fragile because they have not yet experienced much life. Do not be fooled by the look of innocence because some children may have a world of sexual experimentation in their past. Children who experiment with sexual behavior in their youth can be known as juvenile sex offenders. According to the article, “Adolescent Sex Offenders,” by John Davis, et. al. “The juvenile sexual offender is defined as a youth, from puberty to the legal age of majority, who commits any sexual act with a person of any age, against the victims will, without consent, or in an aggressive, exploitive or threatening manner.” More times than not, children experimenting with these types of behavior are abusing a child younger than they are and against their free will.

Wendy Koch from USA Today wrote about a study performed by Crimes Against Children Research Center at the University of New Hampshire. “The study, based on 2004 law enforcement data, finds that juvenile sex offenders commonly target children younger than they are. Their numbers increase sharply at age 12 and plateau at 14” (Koch). As if parents of young children did not have enough to worry about with pedophiles in the community, they need to be cautious of other juveniles within close vicinity of their children. “Juveniles are 36% of all sex offenders who victimize children. Seven out of eight are at least 12 years old, and 93% are boys.” Parents of possible victims and parents of possible offenders have much to worry about.

The question to ask is; what is causing this sexual experimentation at such a young age? According to Child Services Practice Notes on “Understanding Juvenile Sex Offenders,” for North Carolina’s Child Welfare Social Workers from the North Carolina Division of Social Services and the Family of Children’s Resource Program, “sexual offending behaviors are extremely complex—the theory most widely accepted today is known as the “learning theory,” which holds that sexually abusive behavior in children is linked to many factors, including exposure to sexuality and/or violence, early childhood experiences (e.g., sexual victimization), exposure to child pornography and advertising, substance abuse, heightened arousal to children, and exposure to aggressive role models/family violence.” Basically, children experimenting with sexual behavior are doing so because they were exposed to some type of similar behavior at a young age. They may deem this type of behavior as normal being that it was done to them and they do not know any better. “Children who sexually abuse are far more likely than the general population to have been physically, sexually, or otherwise abused. Studies indicate that between 40% and 80% of sexually abusive youth have themselves been sexually abused, and that 20% to 50% have been physically abused” (Child Services).

Most would say that juvenile sex offenders are not only victimizing other children but are victims themselves. There is heightened controversy over punishment, treatment and registry of juvenile sex offenders. Some say that because they are victims themselves, they should not be punished but treated for their behavior. Others say that their behavior should not be condoned and they should be registered as a sex offender just like adults under Meghan’s Law. The law states that “If a youth is exiting a Division of Youth Corrections placement, they must register five days prior to release into the community” (Davis). This raises that controversy because these children are under the age of 18 and people think that their identity and record should be protected.

The right decision may never surface. In all honesty, parents would rather know what child is living in their neighborhood with a history of sexual behavior to protect and watch out for their own children. Treatment may be enough for some children and prevent them from sexually offending again, but will not be enough for all. Sexually offending as a child could lead to sexual offenses in adulthood. “A common belief about juvenile sexual offenders is that even after treatment, most will offend again” (Child Services). Take this as a warning.

Work Cited:
“Understanding Juvenile Sex Offenders.” Child Services: Practice Notes for North Carolina Child Welfare Social Workers from the North Carolina Division of Social Services and the Family of Children’s Resource Programs 7 (May 2002): Web. 19 July 2010. http://www.practicenotes.org/vol7_no2/understand_jso.htm

Davis, John, Connie Isaac, Sandy Lane and Gail Ryan. “Adolescent Sex Offenders.” Child Abuse and Neglect: The International Journal. Web. 19 July 2010. http://www.hopefs.org/Behavior/juvenilesexoffenders.html.

Koch, Wendy. “Study: Many sex offenders are kids themselves.” USA Today. 5 Jan 2010. Web. 19 July 2010. http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2010-01-03-kid-sex-offenders_N.htm

Identifying Pedophilia

Pedophilia is a psychological disorder diagnosed by clinicians. According to Counter Pedophilia Investigation Unit (CPIU), “a person who molested children was considered to have a psychiatric disorder only if his actions ‘caused clinically significant distress or impairment in social, occupational or other important areas of functioning.” The person must have issues in those areas to suffer from abnormal pedophilia. “In other words, a man who molested children without remorse, and without experiencing significant impairment in his social and work relationships, could be diagnosed by a clinician as a “psychologically normal” type of pedophile” (CPIU). Here, pedophilia is normalized and it distinguishes between who is a normal pedophile and who is not. That can make it all the more confusing to spot a pedophile.

Parents are urged to watch out for pedophiles to protect their children, but spotting them out can be difficult, especially after reading the description above. According to the article ‘Profile of a Pedophile’ by Charles Montaldo, “Pedophiles can be anyone -- old or young, rich or poor, educated or uneducated, non-professional or professional, and of any race.” That leaves little room to narrow down who is a pedophile and who is not. Certain characteristics can be beneficial in gaining knowledge on who may be a pedophile. “Often the pedophile is male and over 30 years of age. He is often fascinated with children and child activities appearing to prefer those activities to adult oriented activities” (Montaldo).

Paying closer attention to the men around children with similar characteristics can better a parents’ awareness of who is involved in their child’s life. Although, it seems as if that cannot be enough. “There is no way to identify them from the next, other than their desire to commit horrific acts on children” (CPIU). The worst part is, there is no easy way to identify someone who wants to commit sexual acts on children, only clues that can lead to questions. Clues would include someone who “has hobbies that are child-like such as collecting popular expensive toys, keeping reptiles or exotic pets, or building plane and car models” (Montaldo). That’s only naming a few clues and not every pedophile will have the same tendencies, thus creating great difficulty in identifying someone with pedophilia.

Michael Jackson, the world famous recording artist and performer also known as the King of Pop, was identified by many in society as a pedophile even after his death in 2009. There were allegations of him committing sexual molestation on a young boy in 1993. After trial, he was acquitted and all charges of child molestation and other acts were dropped. There may never be a clear answer to the question of whether or not Michael Jackson molested a young boy, but society will always have its opinions. What tied Michael Jackson to pedophile characteristics, was his property he called “Neverland” named similar to the Disney movie Peter Pan. Michael Jackson was known for his obsession with children and childlike fantasies such as Neverland. Many say he surrounded himself with child innocence because he never got a childhood being a part of the Jackson 5 as a young boy. He yearned for that feeling of being an innocent child. The question lies, was he a pedophile because of child obsessions or was he really just hoping to get a piece of his childhood back? Society may never know. This is a perfect example of how difficult it can be to distinguish who is a pedophile and who is not.

Works Cited:

Counter Pedophilia Investigation Unit. “Pedophiles.” CPIU. 2010. Web. 5 July 2010. http://www.cpiu.us/pedophiles/

Montaldo, Charles. “Profile of a Pedophile.” About.com: Crime/Punishment. About.com Guide. Web. 5 July 2010. http://crime.about.com/od/sex/p/pedophile.htm.

Pedophiles

Child sexual abuse is a very common act committed by sex offenders, also known as pedophiles. According to the Counter Pedophilia Investigation Unit (CPIU), “A pedophile is an adult who is sexually attracted to a child or children.” Pedophiles are a growing threat to society and account for a great amount of sex offenders. Statistics show that, “Sixty-seven percent of all victims of sexual assault reported to law enforcement agencies were juveniles (under the age of 18), 34% of all victims were under age 12” (CPIU). That is more than 50% of sex crimes committed against children. Also, “One of every seven victims of sexual assault reported to law enforcement was under age 6” (CPIU). These are only a few of the crime statistics that have been reported to law enforcement agencies.

Many sex crimes committed against children may never be reported because a child may not speak out about what happened. Also, in most cases of child sexual abuse or molestation, there is a bond or connection between the offender and child. “Most childhood sexual abuse occurs with someone a child has an established and trusting relationship with” (CPIU). The offender can be someone the child is related to, like a father, uncle, brother, or even a teacher to name a few people close to a child. Strangers are what parents worry about and strive to protect their children from; they don’t believe that anyone close to them would hurt their child.

With that being said, these sex offenders know that will work to their advantage. “Predators use the same innocent vulnerability we strive to protect in our children, for purposes of methodically gaining their trust by giving special attention to them so they can eventually sexually abuse them” (CPIU). A child’s innocence is easily taken advantage of because they believe that they can trust anyone and have not experienced enough life to know they can’t. When that trust is built and the predator sexually abuses the child, the child will believe it okay. For crimes not being reported, the child doesn’t feel that what is happening is wrong or they are afraid to report it for the reason that they like the person and don’t want them in trouble.

Now, what causes a child to trust these individuals who sexually abuse them? There are a number of tricks that pedophiles use to lure a child to trust them. Pedophiles have been known to use the authority trick, desensitize trick, drug and alcohol trick, fame trick and the friendship trick to name a few (CPIU). With a combination of a child’s vulnerability/innocence with their respect for authority figures, sexual abuse is common. This falls under the hero trick, when “Children are often impressed with those individuals they look up to such as those in a position of authority like a coach, teacher, older cousin. They may endure abuse to maintain a relationship where they are receiving special privileges for fear of losing those privileges” (CPIU). A child may not want to disappoint their elder and will do anything to keep that from happening.

Protecting a child from a sex offender is difficult for the fact that children are innocent, naïve and trust people too easily. Awareness by parents, other adults and society will be the only way that will prevent pedophiles from committing sex acts against children. Also, the more educated children are about what is right and wrong will aid in the prevention of juveniles being sexually abused.

Works Cited:

Counter Pedophilia Investigation Unit. “Pedophiles.” CPIU. 2010. Web. 28 June 2010. http://www.cpiu.us/pedophiles/

Counter Pedophilia Investigation Unit. “Statistics.” CPIU. 2010. Web. 28 June 2010.
http://www.cpiu.us/statistics-2/

Sex Offenders and the Community

Sex crimes such as rape, statutory rape, sexual abuse and child pornography are a few of the crimes committed that will label someone as a sex offender. Sex offenders are a growing problem because of their threat to society once they are released back into the community. There is controversy over letting an offender back into the streets or keeping them in prison for a longer period of time for more rehabilitation. Some may say that once a person fulfills their sentencing requirements they should be deemed free to go back to living in society. Oppositionists suggest that offenders must be tested and deemed fit to be released back into the community.

The United States Constitution is in agreement that sex offenders should be deemed fit by the law before leaving prison. According to an article “What does the Supreme Court Ruling Mean for Sex Offenders,” by Kayla Webley with Time News Feed, “The Supreme Court ruled…that those inmates deemed ‘sexually dangerous’ can be held indefinitely-even after their prison terms are complete.” This gives more reassurance to society that they are being protected and can trust that the government will do everything possible to prevent a sex offender from a potential crime in the future. According to an article, “Extended Civil Commitment of Sex Offenders is Upheld,” by Adam Liptak with the New York Times, “The federal law at issue in the case allows the government to continue to detain prisoners who had engaged in sexually violent conduct, suffered from mental illness and would have difficulty controlling themselves.” These three key points are noted on every single person convicted as a sex offender. If the individual shows signs of the violent conduct, the mental illness or not showing self control, they will not be released into society.

With the Civil Commitment Law enacted, society can rest assured that they are being protected. Once a person becomes a sex offender, they are labeled forever. Sex offenders become registered for life and are easily located through an online search made possible by Megan’s Law. According to the Office of the Attorney General in the State of California, “California's Megan's Law provides the public with certain information on the whereabouts of sex offenders so that members of our local communities may protect themselves and their children.” With the Civil Commitment and Megan’s Law, society can easily have more insight on who committed a sex crime, who was made to stay in prison after their prison sentence was up, who was deemed fit to be released, where a sex offender is living and what crime they committed. These laws enable society to have more insight on who is living in their area.

Even with these laws intact, there is still room for a first time offender to commit a sex act, for a registered sex offender to commit a second act and for many people in society to not be educated of the people surrounding them in their community. The question to ask is this: Is it okay to allow sex offenders back into society once the government approves that they have passed the ‘test’ of being fit for the community? The answer is no because as mentioned, once an offender always an offender. It is easy to say that these sex offenders are given the benefit of the doubt but it is the duty of the community to not allow that to happen. This opens doors to the opportunity of committing a sex crime again. What to do with these offenders is in question but there is one thing for sure: they cannot commit a crime again.

Works Cited:
Liptak, Adam. “Extended Civil Commitment of Sex Offenders is Upheld.” The New York Times. 17 May, 2010: A3. Print.

“Megan’s Law.” Office of the Attorney General: State of California. 2009. Web. 16 June, 2010.

Webley, Kayla. “What Does the Supreme Court Ruling Mean for Sex Offender?” Time News Feed. Time News Feed, 17 May 2010. Web. 16 June, 2010.